Meet the Team

MCPAWS Staff

Amber Kostoff

Executive Director

Amber Kostoff began volunteering at MCPAWS in 2010. As a volunteer, Amber was able to fully appreciate the vital role that MCPAWS plays within the Valley County community. It was always especially satisfying for her to witness the many happy endings MCPAWS makes possible for animals in need. Amber made the transition from volunteer to staff in 2014, and served as the Shelter Manager. In 2017, Amber stepped into the role of Executive Director.

Amber is an avid outdoorsperson and supporter of wilderness and wild places. Before joining the MCPAWS team professionally, she was employed in Recreation and Wilderness Management on the Payette National Forest since 2001. She received her B.A. in Political Science from Utah State University in 2004 and her M.S. in Natural Resources from the University of Idaho in 2013. Amber lives in Lakefork, ID with her husband Patrick and their MCPAWS rescue dogs, Ramey, Warren and Tootsie.

Kattie Kingsley

Development Director

Kattie has been at MCPAWS since August 2013. She is originally from Santa Monica, CA. She received her Bachelor’s in Journalism from San Diego State University. She moved to Missoula, MT in 2010 and worked in development for the Clark Fork Coalition and the Montana Food Bank Network. Kattie moved to McCall in 2013 with her husband Jeff to enjoy full-time living in the mountains. Kattie loves hiking with the dogs, alpine skiing, traveling, and being outdoors during the beautiful McCall summers!

Kattie and her husband share their home with two rescue dogs, four chickens, and two cats. She loves living in McCall and working with the incredible staff, volunteers, and animals at MCPAWS.

Christa Brown

Shelter Manager

Christa graduated from Boise State University in May 2013 with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology. She grew up in McCall and moved back a to be closer to the mountains and the lifestyle she grew up with. Christa started at MCPAWS in May 2014. She has dedicated her life to social services and has finally found her place caring for animals! Christa has a Lab named Crosby. Crosby came from Central California Lab Rescue and Christa has had him for 7 years.

Christa loves working at MCPAWS and feels very fortunate to be part of the MCPAWS team. In her spare time she quilts and spends time outside kayaking and hiking.

Megan Nash

Shelter Assistant Manager

Megan began working at MCPAWS in May of 2016. She grew up in John Day, Oregon and graduated from The College of Idaho in 2013 with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry. Megan moved to McCall shortly after graduating to get back to the small town lifestyle she grew up in and to continue to grow her passion for skiing. Megan grew up visiting McCall with her family and has been skiing at Brundage since she was a toddler.

In her spare time Megan enjoys skiing, reading, hiking, and spending time with her MCPAWS rescue dog, Bella. She has always loved animals and hopes to continue working in this field that she finds incredibly rewarding.

Krystal Giessen

Shelter Medicine Program Manager

Krystal started working for MCPAWS in October of 2016 as a Kennel Attendant. She grew up in Emmett, Idaho and has Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Boise State University. Krystal moved to McCall full time in 2016 after graduating.

She has always loved working with animals, and so the shelter was a perfect fit! In her free time she enjoys hiking, fishing, and spending time with her cat, Hank, who she met and adopted while working at MCPAWS!

Steve & Nancy Basinger

Shelter Veterinarians

Ellyn Brannon

Front Desk Ambassador

Chelsea Coon & Dan O’Malley

Animal Care Attendants

Board of Directors

Bonnie Thompson

Chair

Bonnie is a McCall native and has resided here most of her life. She and her husband Todd enjoy boating, fishing, camping, hiking and skiing. Bonnie attended the University of Idaho and Northwest Nazarene University where she obtained teaching and administrative degrees.

After 25 years, she is recently retired from the education sector. She feels that MCPAWS provides an excellent opportunity to pair people and animals together for the benefit of both and is excited about working with MCPAWS.

Mike Fein

Vice Chair

Mike Fein was born in Paso Robles, California and graduated from Capital High School in 1969. He graduated from College of Idaho in 1973 with a Bachelor’s in Biology. Mike worked for Simplot Company for 15 years in sales and marketing. Mike and his wife Colleen moved to Valley County from Eagle in 2014. Mike is an avid fly fisherman, hunter, woodworker and fly tier. If he is not on the river with a fly rod or at his fly tying desk, he’ll most likely be in his woodshop. Mike has two daughters and five grandchildren living in Oregon. Mike and Colleen have a Cockapoo named Lucy who just turned 13!

“Keep the wind at your back and your lines tight.”

Tammy Ota

Secretary

Summer vacation in McCall has been a tradition for over 50 years for Tammy Ota and her family. Her mom and dad spent their honeymoon in McCall and eventually purchased a second home here. She retired from Patterson Dental Supply in 2018. As a territory manager, she sold dental equipment and supplies to dentists in Salt Lake City for over 17 years. Prior to that she was a Dental Hygienist for 20 years. Tammy is a graduate of the University of Hawaii where she majored in Dental Hygiene. She is married to Mel Ota and together they own a townhouse on #1 Birch on the McCall golf course. Their Jack Russell Terrier, Cali, was born in McCall and loves long walks along the lake.

Tammy has been a volunteer since 2016 and enjoys walking the dogs and playing with the cats at MCPAWS. Now that she is retired, she is excited to be a part of the McCall community and to spend more time volunteering at the shelter providing loving care for abandoned, surrendered, and lost dogs and cats. Raising funds for the shelter is an important priority. Tammy is also looking forward to utilizing her sales and marketing skills in assisting the MCPAWS Thrift Store.

Becoming a MCPAWS board member has been a goal for several years. “It is important for the area around Valley County to have a clean, up to date, and efficient animal shelter. MCPAWS needs to have a strong board of directors to ensure the shelter provides a safe temporary home for dogs and cats far into the future.” Tammy looks forward to working with other board members to make sure MCPAWS has what it needs.

Tara Reeder

Tara Reeder was born in Boise Idaho and graduated from Capital High school in 1996. She then attended Boise State University graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design. Tara grew up coming to McCall and enjoying the mountains of Idaho and became a full time resident of McCall in 2006. Tara was the lead designer for a real estate based graphics firm in Boise for 9 years before moving to McCall. At which point she started McCall Weddings taking her love of photography and design and becoming an events coordinator. After being picked up by Whitetail Club as their private events Coordinator Tara sold McCall Weddings which is still locally owned and operated. Tara then moved on from event coordination and obtained her real estate license in 2014. She currently works for Crawford Olson Real Estate in McCall as an active agent and the Brokers Assistant.

Over the years Tara has volunteered for many local organizations including Little Ski Hill and regularly volunteers at Barbara Morgan Elementary where her two boys attend and has helped with many other fundraising and athletic events in town.

Tara’s love for animals has always been very strong and she has adopted many rescue pets. Currently, Tara would love to share her love for rescuing animals which has led her to the MCPAWS board. Tara feels that there could be nothing better than helping individuals find the perfect pet and watching the bonds that are created between our four legged friends and an individual. Seeing animals that have never received the love they deserved and watching them blossom into a whole new animal once they find their person is absolutely amazing!

Bobi Cleveland

Born into a military family in Tacoma Washington as one of a pair of twins, Bobi Cleveland began her travels as a six week old. After her early years of moving with the Army the family settled in Boise to be close to the grandparents in Weiser. She graduated from Capital High School and later received a business degree from BSU. McCall has always been Bobi’s “happy place” where she and her twin sister would spend a portion of summer vacations with their Grandparents in the Payette National Campgrounds in and around McCall. McCall reminds her of many of the little Bavarian and Swiss towns she adored as a child.

After a three year stint in Breckenridge Colorado, where her daughters were born, Bobi moved her family back to Idaho and went to work for Idaho Power at the Corporate Headquarters located in Boise as a Financial Accountant. After retiring from Idaho Power as a Financial Analyst, Bobi and her husband Bruce made the move from Boise to their cabin in McCall, enjoying the many seasons and beauty of the area.

The Cleveland family heard the story of the origination of MCPAWS and became supporters of the no-kill shelter many years before their move to McCall. Willow, their Miniature Schnauzer, has loved to take part in the opportunities offered through MCPAWS. Bobi is also a member of The Friends of the Library and spends time volunteering at the Pump House. She also spends time at the MCPAWS Thrift Store where she has made many amazing purchases.

Bobi looks forward to working with the board of directors of MCPAWS and appreciates the opportunity to be a part of such an awesome organization.